Question

Many of us have bought lottery tickets at one time or another. Few of us have ever won. Explain why you think people continue to purchase lottery tickets given the very lean schedule of reinforcement. Can you think of other instances in your life in which very intermittent or infrequent reinforcement was enough to maintain some of your behaviors?

Answer 1

• Purchasing lottery tickets is an example of variable ratio schedule of reinforcement where a response is reinforced after an unpredictable number of responses. This schedule creates a steady, high rate of responding. People keep on engaging in this behaviour because in partial reinforcement the response is reinforced only part of the time. Learned behaviors are acquired more slowly with partial reinforcement, but the response is more resistant to extinction.The longer the conditioning has taken place and the magnitude of the conditioned response may make the response more resistant to extinction. It also includes habituation,repeated exposure for a long period of time makes people used to it and difficult to give up the behaviour.
• For example,during my counseling sessions,I sometimes use variable ration by reinforcing client's responses differently. Sometimes after one response or sometimes after three correct responses which shows improvement in their behaviour as well. My behaviour has also been reinforced wherein I love playing games on machines since childhood which has become quite a habit now.